August 21st, 2024
Dear Kent Primary School Families,
Welcome back to another exciting school year! We hope this letter finds you and your loved ones in good health and high spirits. As summer draws to a close, we are eagerly preparing to welcome your children back to a year filled with growth, learning, and new adventures.
We are thrilled to announce that the first day of school for 1st to 4th graders will be on Tuesday, September 3rd. Our kindergarten students will have a shortened day on September 3rd. Along with their parents, they will participate in an orientation session from 9:30 – 10:45am (There is no school bus transportation for kindergarten on this day). Their first full day of school for kindergarten students will be September 4th (a more detailed email was sent earlier this month to those families). Our dedicated staff is ready to create a safe and enriching environment for every student. We have been hard at work enhancing our curriculum, updating our facilities, and planning a variety of engaging activities to ensure that this academic year is both enjoyable and educational.
Daily Arrival and Pick-Up: School begins promptly at 9:00 AM and it ends at 3:35 PM. Student drop off begins at 8:50 in our front parking lot. Staff will be there to help your child exit your vehicle and proceed to the front doors. We would like to remind families that transport their children to school that they are expected to arrive in their classroom by 9:00 AM. Instruction begins as soon as our students enter the classroom, so late arrivals interfere with all the children’s learning. Pick up at the end of the day begins at 3:25 PM in our cafeteria. You may arrive at 3:20 PM. Please enter through the cafeteria doors. You must bring ID with you, and the adult picking up must be listed as a contact in our system. If you plan to pick up, you must use School Dismissal Manager to report . Please do NOT pick up your child early unless there are extenuating circumstances as this disrupts the learning environment. From 2:50 – 3:25 PM, there will be no early pickups unless it is an emergency.
Our Commitment to Safety: The health and safety of our students, staff, and families remain our top priority. We work closely with local health and safety authorities to create a secure environment throughout the school year. Our staff is excited to continue a schoolwide PBIS program in which we teach expected behaviors that are aligned to Respect, Responsibility and Safety. Along with our support staff, we work to ensure we monitor every student’s social and emotional wellbeing. As a learning community, we recognize the importance of understanding emotions and teaching the different strategies to handle daily social interactions among peers and adults.
Exciting Updates:
- This year we will continue with our new ELA curriculum, Core Knowledge Language Arts (CKLA), which will help enrich student learning and align practices to the Science of Reading.
- Each day, our school will take part in a WIN period, (what I need), during which students will be provided with intervention or enrichment in ELA and Math according to their own ability levels.
- We will continue our Weekly Principal Newsletters in which we update our families on the interesting happenings and important information for KPS.
School Dismissal Manager (SDM):
I wanted to follow up on how important it is that we have clear communication on how your child gets home every day. The purpose of the School Dismissal Manager app is to for you to have easy access to change your child’s dismissal. The School Dismissal Manager digital system is the most efficient and accurate way to track dismissal requests, its purpose is to make things easier and less prone to confusion. Several neighboring districts have used it, and the feedback is very positive.
Kent Primary School proudly announces that we will continue to utilize SDM starting Tuesday, September 3, 2024. Classroom teachers will receive a dismissal report between 2:30-3:15 PM.
Through the online dismissal management system, you can:
- Report student absences and late arrivals.
- Schedule early pick-ups from school.
- Make transportation changes as late as 2:15 PM on the current day.
In the coming days, you will receive an email to set up your child's SDM account. The email from SDM will contain important instructions and your personal login credentials.
If you don’t receive an email, please do the following:
1. Check your spam mail
2. If that doesn’t work, try clicking on forgot username and type in your email.
3. If that doesn’t work, please call the main office for assistance during school hours.
Thank you for your ongoing support with the School Dismissal Manager.
Family-Teacher Collaboration: At Kent Primary School, we strongly believe in the power of collaboration between family and teachers. Open communication is key to your child's success, and we encourage you to stay engaged in your child's education. Throughout the year, there will be opportunities to meet with teachers, attend conferences, and participate in school events. In September we will communicate to all families how they can get to participate at their children’s grade level by using Grade Level Parent Pathways.
Get Involved: Our Parent-Teacher Organization (PTO) plays a vital role in enhancing the school experience for our students. We encourage you to join the PTO and participate in its activities and initiatives. Family involvement strengthens our school community and supports our shared mission of providing the best education for our students.
As we embark on this new school year together, we are filled with gratitude for the opportunity to work with your amazing children and support their growth. We look forward to creating memories, fostering friendships, and achieving great academic accomplishments. Thank you for entrusting us with the privilege of educating your children. We are excited to welcome them back to Kent Primary School and can't wait to see the bright future they will create.
Sincerely,
Vincent Fino
KPS Principal
